As you've read in the legal press and heard at countless conferences, the billable hour is not the future but it’ll likely stick around for awhile. However, merely quoting an hourly rate doesn't help clients, and they're now demanding much more useful and reliable cost estimates. Together with your client, develop a reliable estimate that shares the estimating risk fairly between you (and helps competitors discredit themselves at the same time).

In recent years, clients have pushed lawyers to eliminate some of the uncertainty surrounding the cost of large matters such as litigation or transactions by providing project estimates. Lawyers respond with “It depends.” Clients say, “That may be, but I can’t tell that to the boss. I’ve got to budget this and I don’t want to look like a fool by being way off base. Give me something I can count on.”

In this course, you’ll learn how to master the issue that gives ulcers to lawyers and their clients alike.

RainmakerVT teaches you an interactive process by which the client and lawyer each contribute unique knowledge about the factors influencing how much the matter will cost. By collaborating, they co-author the estimate and share the risk of its accuracy. The relationship-enhancing aspect is that they can both now make smaller adjustments throughout the span of the matter, eliminating any major surprises at the end.

In 30% of selling situations, “No Decision” is the winner. That’s because it's rare for either buyers or sellers to have a reliable decision-making process. The resulting frustration leads to “decision fatigue” that causes buyers to abandon the effort. By providing and facilitating a reliable decision process, you deliver great value long before you’re hired -- and raise the odds of getting hired.

Lawyers have managed to get found for a long time (though haphazardly), but few have a reliable process to help those who find them make smart, well-informed, self-interested decisions, quickly and confidently. The “Getting Chosen” courses teach you how to focus on facilitating a decision reliably in a way that clients prefer, thereby earning trust and preserving access.